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// Prologue 
// Story: No Regrets 
// by Rustyshell 
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Prologue

The key to engaging an audience in any form of entertainment is suspension of disbelief. You have to invest your viewers enough that they allow themselves to believe in something surreal despite a seeming lack of realism. If the patrons turn too much of a critical eye towards your work, it's most likely because you've failed to give them a vested interest in it. This was a lesson Jackpot had learned time and again since becoming a stage magician. For every successful act he had one that had been a complete disaster. Some had been so bad that he had almost given up on his profession out of sheer embarrassment. But he hadn't. Instead, he had focused on how to improve his acts so that such an incident would either never happen again or would at least be an extremely rare occurrence. Practice might not bring about perfection but it can sure as hell stave off calamity. Unless a bunch of elderly ponies and a member of the Wonderbolts ruin your biggest magic act and cause you to go back to the drawing board. 
Ever since he and Big Buck's Splashtastic Escape had been exposed, Jackpot had been working day and night on a new act that would regain them the love and adoration of the Equestrian public. The two of them went over dozens of ideas before finally settling upon the one that would be their salvation. They had rounded up all of their old stagehands and convinced the media moguls of Las Pegasus to give them another shot. Weeks of practice soon followed as all of them worked together in order to ensure their ascent back into the spotlight. Advertisements had been sent out detailing their return and hyping up their latest act. “Come One! Come All! Experience the latest and greatest magical show from Las Pegasus’s most iconic magician duo, Jackpot and Big Bucks! Witness a pony experience the wonders of flight without the aid of magic, wings, or balloons!” their flyers had said. Every member of the group had crossed their hooves and prayed that the advertising would be a success. And a success it was, as all of Equestria was abuzz about their comeback and how in Celestia's name they were going to pull of such a stunt. Their first shows had sold out like hot cakes and all that was left for the pair of them to do was to ensure the show was a stunning display.
It was with this pressure that Jackpot found himself backstage, listening to the packed crowd behind the curtain. It was almost time for their first show and he was running through the various routines they planned to perform before the show capper. Sure, the main event was what the audience would be talking about after the show, but everything leading up to that was just as vital. If they couldn't engage the audience with the opening bits of their act, they probably wouldn't be able to invest them into their climax. A magician had to do a proper crescendo to his final bit if he wanted to have the masses eating out of his hoof. 
"You ready for this," a familiar voice said, pulling him out of his train of thought. 
"As ready as I usually am, Big Bucks," Jackpot said. 
The larger pony let out a chuckle and gave his friend a large smile. "Well then, I guess we have nothing to worry about. I've never met a pony more paranoid about his performances than you. Not that I'm complaining, mind you. Your paranoia always makes sure our shows are without flaw and for that, I am grateful. Even if it also causes me to miss out on some shuteye with how much you make us practice." 
Jackpot blushed in embarrassment and his friend laughed at his expense. "You're also the pony that's the easiest to tease," Big Bucks said. He snickered a little bit more and then transitioned to his stage persona. "Now, what do you say we go and give these folks a show that they'll be talking about for years."
In response, Jackpot straightened his stance, adopted his personality, and said "Yeah! Let's show them why we're the greatest magicians in all of Equestria!" He and Big Bucks bumped hooves and took their places as the curtains raised. Smoke suddenly began to fill the stage and his partner's booming voice could be heard over the speakers.
"Ladies and gentlecolts, this is the moment you've all been waiting for. The comeback of the century. The return of the greatest magical duo in all of the known world. Please give your applause and adoration to the two only Jackpot and Big Bucks!"
The crowd let out a large chant of "Welcome Back!" as the two of them strutted out onto the stage and began their show. First, they started with simple tricks. They pulled rabbits out of their show hats and performed the old "Is this your card?" routine to get their audience engaged with feats they were familiar with. The show then transitioned into more complex stunts, as they chose a member of their patrons to come to the stage. The volunteer was an earth pony mare in her 20s with a slender physique and a wavy green mane. Jackpot couldn't make out her cutie mark due to the dress she was wearing. After bringing her on stage, they locked her into a vertical box and covered it with a sheet. When they removed the sheet, they revealed the new state of the box. It had been compacted down to a fourth of the mare's height. The crowd let out cries of despair but Big Bucks interrupted their dismay and said "Fear not! For we would not harm a mare as fair our lovely volunteer. If you do not believe of us, look to entrance!" The audience turned their heads and let out gasps of shock as the mare stood right in front of the door to the theater. 
"As you can see, the mare is unharmed!", Jackpot said. The spectators let out a raucous applause and the two of them gave a bow. "And just think, that's not even the greatest sight you'll see tonight folks!" The show continued with the crowd eating out of their hooves as they transitioned from trick to trick. Their onlookers became more invested with each passing stage of the show until it was time for the main event. Jackpot let out a nervous breath, this was the moment they would reclaim the adoration they had lost.  
Big Bucks quieted the crowd and began to speak. "And now for the closing act of the evening. This is the reason all of you have graciously given us a second chance and we do not intend to disappoint you. So, without further ado, we bring you " The Levitating Pony!". The two of them moved to the center of the stage and told the crowd to begin counting down to ten. 
"Ten", their adoring fans said in unison, "Nine...Eight...Seven...Six...Five...Four...Three...Two...One!" They looked at at Equestria's greatest magical duo with great expectation as they all said one and were left in stunned silence. Not because the two magicians had begun to float into the air. But rather, because nothing had happened at all. Their confusion began to turn into disappointment as they began to let out a chorus of boos. The performers took this in stride and let out smirks to the audience.
"Sorry folks," Jackpot said. 
"We were just messing with you a little," Big Bucks said. "Fear not, because the main event truly begins...NOW!" The two of them suddenly began to go up into the air and a wave of silence and amazement came across the audience. They continued to be levitated up into the air without a glow from their horns or around their bodies. They had no wings or balloons to aid them in their flight. They simply floated of their own accord, at least in the eyes of the audience. Soon, silence was replaced with joy and adoration and their former hecklers turned back into fans and showered them with praise. They were back in business.



12 hours later

Big Bucks and Jackpot waved to their last audience of the night and thanked them for their attendance. They brought out their stagehands and gave one last bow before the curtains closed. Once they were completely shut, the two of them let their exhaustion overtake them and slumped down into the chairs the helpers had brought. The duo stretched and let their aching muscles breathe. They accepted water from their friends and guzzled it down. Now refreshed, the tandem sat up and addressed all of the ponies around them.
"Excellent job, everypony," Big Bucks said. "Because of all of your hard work our show is now the biggest in all of Equestria. Take pride in that, you earned it."
"But don't get to prideful now," Jackpot said, "Because tomorrow's show is going to be even better. And before all of you ask how this could possibly be after a show as spectacular as tonight's, look around at one another and ask yourselves a question. Is that all I've got? Is that the best show we could possibly pull off? If your answer is yes, than you should probably get out of this industry. Not because tonight's show was bad. On the contrary, that was one of the greatest performances I've ever delivered and it was because of all of you! But don't stop there. Never stop there. The goal of our profession is to always top our prior show. That's certainly what I plan to do and with all of you, I have no doubt tomorrow will make today look like utter trite by comparison. So enjoy that pat on the back, you've all earned it. But never settle. Always strive to make your show the greatest it could possibly be." He finished speaking and looked around at everyone but was nervous about what he saw. The room had gone silent during Jackpot's speech and he was a little worried he had screwed up.
"Couldn't have said it better myself," Big Bucks said. Suddenly, everypony else nodded their head in agreement and gave their patron a round of applause for his address. "And now that we've all gotten that out of the way, lets clean up real fast so we can all go home and crash on our beds." Everyone let out a shout of agreement and soon they were all packing up the show supplies and setting up the props for the first shows in the morning. Once all that was finished, they all exited the theater and parted ways with the two magicians walking together towards their apartments on the other side of Las Pegasus. 
"I've gotta say," said Jackpot, "I wasn't always sure if that new trick of ours was going to work. If we had failed during any other part of the show, they wouldn't have been so willing to truly believe that we were levitating of our own accord. It all could have fallen apart from one simple mistake and that might have been it for us on the big stage for a while."
"Your always such a downer, Jackpot," Big Bucks replied. "Like I said earlier today, with you as my paranoid partner in crime nothing is going to go wrong. You're always so meticulous about every part of the act and while I will admit that does get a tad tedious at times, it's also the main reason we are as big as were are now. Don't try and deny it, Jackpot," Big Bucks said just as Jackpot had been about to reply. "I know you're going to say it's not the main reason. You're also going to say it's because of me and the stagehands more than you that the show is a glowing gem. I know you well enough to be able to see that you'll try to deny how great you are. Not because of any self-doubt or humility, you are a stage magician after all. But because you always analyze every facet of yourself and look to improve. That speech tonight was a good example of that. Can't ever enjoy life for too long before your eyes turn to even greater heights. Now that's a fine way to live my friend, don't get me wrong, but could you at least try and enjoy how truly wonderful our show was tonight. We've both earned that." Big Bucks finished talking and looked at his friend expectantly.
"Yeah, I suppose you're right," Jackpot said. "Tonight was pretty damn great, if I don't say so myself."
"Hey, don't get to cocky now," his fellow magician replied. "I also did a pretty good job on my own."
"Sure, sure," Jackpot stated, "but we both know who everyone is going to be talking about more tonight."
"We sure do," Big Bucks answered back. "They'll be talking about the amazing earth pony who managed to fly without wings or a horn. Why, I do believe they'll be writing stories about me the same way they do for Starswirl the Bearded. Big Bucks the Levitator, they'll call me. All of our descendants will be taught in school about my amazing accomplishment. Don't worry though, I'm sure they'll include you in the footnotes."
Jackpot rolled his eyes and responded back "Keep living in your delusions. They'll really all be talking about the unicorn who managed to not only levitate himself into the air without the magic from his horn, but also his portly assistant."
"Hey," his cohort retorted, "I'm not your assistant. And I'm sure they'll instead be talking about I how graced a unicorn with flight who was below average in the spell department. Hell, I practically made you an alicorn sans the wings...hey, you think... "
"No," Jackpot cut him off bluntly, "We aren't adding wings to the act."
"Can't blame a guy for trying," Big Bucks said before he started to chuckle to himself. Jackpot pretended to roll his eyes at him and then joined him in laughing. They continued to banter back and forth before reaching the fork in the road and splitting up. They wished one another goodnight and headed to their apartments. 



1 hour later

Jackpot slumped down onto his tuxedo sofa and let out a sigh of exhaustion and satisfaction. Today had been a long and enervating occasion. They had done ten different shows, going the same acts they had done in their first show of the day. Ten different times they had played their audience like a fiddle and ten different times they had ended the show with some of the loudest applause they had ever heard. The adoration had filled the duo with a great sense of pride and accomplishment. The work that had gone into acquiring it had been exhausting, however. It had all been worth it, though. They were once again the hottest magic show in all of Las Pegasus. Their reputation had been repaired in just one day after having been sullied by their failed water tank trick from several weeks back. Jackpot stretched and let out a content yawn. It was great to be back. And to think, all it had taken to restore their status as Las Pegasus’s number one magical duo were some wires. Wires that had been magically induced with invisibility and were designed to begin hoisting him and Big Bucks up as they reached a certain part of their show. It had taken weeks of practice for it to feel natural to just hang up in the air by a sole wire but now it was as familiar to him as using his horn to levitate his tea to him. Speaking of which… Jackpot sat up and lit up his horn. He poured tea from a jug into one of his cups and brought it over to himself. He took a long sip, savoring the sweet taste, and then set it down on his coffee table. He propped up his hooves onto the table and crossed them. He let both of his upper legs rest behind his head and reflected on a job well done.
A short time later he stood up from his sofa and set about getting ready for bed. He finished off his tea and put his now empty cup into the sink before setting the jug he had used back into his refrigerator. He debated about washing his dishes before deciding that he could let them pile up a little more and moving on to checking his props for the next days show. His deck of playing cards would possibly need to be replaced and his top hat could use some repair but neither matter was of immediate concern so he packed his bags and retreated to his bathroom. He took a good look at himself in the mirror and was not surprised to see himself a tad disheveled. He decided to remedy this and turned the faucet on in his tub.
One shower later and Jackpot was ready to turn in for the night, he had another long day of performances tomorrow and needed some shut eye. He stepped out of his bathroom and plopped down snout first onto his bed, taking in the comfort of its cushions and letting his tired muscles rest. He truly was living the life he had always wanted to, even if it had taken him a while to figure out that this is what he had actually wanted all along. This was his life and he was proud of it. He wouldn’t trade it for anything else in all of Equestria. He felt a smile appear on his face as he turned over and looked at his ceiling, content as a pony could be. And then, slowly but surely, that smile began to fade as old memories began to come to his mind. Memories of seasons spent searching for his purpose in life. Memories of friends he could barely remember and whom he hadn’t spoken to in decades. And, most importantly, memories of her.